The game debuted at Gamescom Opening Night Live 2023 under the codename Project Mugen — a trailer of an anime crew swinging, driving and living through a modern metropolis that instantly earned the "anime GTA" nickname.
The reveal introduced the core cast — the Captain, Taffy and the city itself — and the design promise that defined all later marketing: if you can see it, you can interact with it.
In hindsight, the announcement set expectations the project has kept feeding: every later showing, from the rename to the TGS demo, traces back to this three-minute trailer.